Coming off a strong performance in his return to Phoenix, point guard Eric Bledsoe kept the momentum going during the past week. He's performed well on both ends of the court, averaging 21.3 points, 5.3 assists and 2.3 steals over the past three games while shooting 60.0% from the field and 41.7% from three-point range. Bledsoe has settled into a comfortable dynamic with Giannis Antetokounmpo, with the two combining to become a potent pick-and-roll pair as Bledsoe has been able to consistently knock down open jumpers when teams sink down to deny passes to Antetokounmpo.

BUCKS LOOK AHEAD

The Bucks head right back on the road to open the week, visiting Boston on Monday to take on the NBA-best Celtics. The two teams have met twice this season already, with each winning on the other's home court. Following that game, the Bucks return to Milwaukee for their longest home stand of the month, hosting the Detroit Pistons on Wednesday, the Dallas Mavericks on Friday and the Utah Jazz on Saturday.

BUCKS QUOTE

John Henson assessing the team's play through 20 games: “We could be better. We’re not in the hole, which is where we’re usually in by now. We’ve just got to play this out until all-star break and keep getting over .500, keep getting our lead in the playoffs and try to get home-court advantage and go from there.”

TOP NBA PLAYER

The San Antonio Spurs have rattled off four straight wins, and LaMarcus Aldridge has played a major role in that success. He has averaged 28.3 points per game during the win streak, including a 41-point outburst on 70.8% shooting against the Memphis Grizzlies on Wednesday night. During the streak, he's shooting 58.9% and has made 6 of 9 three-pointers while adding 7.3 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 1.5 blocks per game.

TOP NBA TEAM

The Utah Jazz was expected to struggle without center Rudy Gobert, but instead has hit its stride, picking up five consecutive wins. The Jazz knocked down a franchise record 18 three-pointers against the Bucks last Saturday, obliterated the Denver Nuggets by 29 points on Tuesday, cruised by the Los Angeles Clippers on Thursday then picked up a 114-108 win over the New Orleans Pelicans to close out a road-home back-to-back on Friday. The Jazz, which has been without guard Rodney Hood the past three games, has gotten solid contributions from up and down the roster during the win streak, with rookie Donovan Mitchell starring on Friday with 41 points — setting a Jazz rookie record and becoming the first rookie since Blake Griffin in 2011 to score 40 points in a game.

NBA QUOTE

New York Knicks center Kristaps Porzingis on when he hoped to return after spraining his right ankle on Wednesday: “I hope it’s next game. They call me ‘the lizard’ because I recover so quickly from things. So hopefully it’s nothing too big. I’m going to get treatment, stay on top of this, and hopefully, the lizard can be ready for Sunday. ... Lizard is my secret name."

This week's firing of Memphis Grizzlies coach David Fizdale exposed numerous issues within that franchise, including a disconnect between Fizdale and Grizzlies star center Marc Gasol. The two reportedly hadn't seen eye to eye in some time and Fizdale's decision to bench Gasol in a loss to the Brooklyn Nets on Sunday was the last straw, with Gasol eagerly venting his frustrations to the media after the game.

Fizdale was fired the next day.

The NBA is a star-driven league. When there's an issue between a player and a coach, it's not often that the coach is going to stick around if the franchise has to pick between the two.

Situations like the one in Memphis underscore why I didn't believe there was anything to the altercation between Antetokounmpo and assistant coach Sean Sweeney on Nov. 25 in Utah. For those who missed it, Sweeney said something to Antetokounmpo during a timeout and Antetokounmpo responded by standing up and yelling threats at him, ultimately needing to be restrained by teammates.

Antetokounmpo downplayed the altercation the next day at practice. He and Sweeney have been extremely close since Sweeney arrived in 2014, watching film together, putting in countless hours on the court at all hours of the day and hanging out on their own time.

While the public blowup didn't look good, there's no underlying issue. In a star-driven league, coaches — let alone assistant coaches — who get on the wrong side of a team's cornerstone player don't tend to stick around. Sweeney's not going anywhere.